Beach Couture: A Trash ‘n Fashion Show, featuring art by Marina DeBris created with the use of trash she collected from area waterways, is being presented at Zero Minus Plus/Fred Segal in Santa Monica through Monday, Sept. 5.

DeBris, a Mar Vista artist, will be on hand for an event and fundraiser benefiting the 5 Gyres project from 6 to 9 p.m. Thursday, Aug. 25 at the gallery, 500 Broadway, Santa Monica. The artworks can also be seen at www.washedup.us.

DeBris created the art pieces using trash she has picked up along Westside beaches and creeks over the past 13 years.

“With this work, I’m hoping to dramatize in a playful way some of the problems our waste creates,” says DeBris. “I use humor to startle viewers into taking a closer look at things we usually ignore. The goal is to encourage people to rethink their use of disposables and, ultimately, reduce waste.”

The exhibit includes several new pieces done specifically for the theme of the show. One poster turns a photo of debris floating in the bay into a mock postcard promotion for Los Angeles tourism.

DeBris said her mission began over 13 years ago when she moved from Bondi Beach, Australia to Los Angeles.

“In the beginning I would just pick up stacks of Styrofoam cups and bring them to the local 7-11, but I soon realized that this wasn’t really attacking the root problem,” she recalled. “I needed a creative way to draw attention to it. The whole idea of making beach detritus into art started just three years ago from the realization that the waste we create always comes back to haunt us.”

Her work has won numerous awards and has been exhibited in juried shows in Los Angeles, New York and throughout California.

Trained as a graphic designer at the Rhode Island School of Design, DeBris said her interest in the intersection of art and the environment has been a constant.

Her art is on view at ZeroMinusPlus/Fred Segal in Santa Monica in celebration of Ocean Awareness Month. Gallery hours are 10 a.m. to 7 p.m. Mondays through Saturdays and noon to 6 p.m. Sundays.